In 2016 alone, more than 5,700 wildfires burned across the state of California according to the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. And despite record rain this winter, climate change is expected to increase the number of large wildfires as well as the length of the wildfire season in California. To help Californian communities meet this challenge, Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) launched its Better Together Resilient Communities grant program today.
 
Through the program, PG&E will invest $1 million over five years – or $200,000 per year – in shareholder-funded grants to help communities better prepare for, withstand, and recover from extreme events and other risks related to climate change. This year, the company is calling for proposals that will build healthy and resilient forests and watersheds to help communities prevent and prepare for increasing wildfire risk.
 
“At PG&E, we believe adapting to the reality of climate change must include helping our communities to become more resilient to its many potential effects, such as the risk of wildfires. One way to do that is to work closely with our local partners, as well as those at the state and federal level, to support the best and most innovative ideas -- with a particular focus on those who live in highly vulnerable areas,” said Geisha Williams, CEO and President of PG&E Corporation.
 
PG&E will award two grants of $100,000 through a competitive process. A panel of community and sustainability leaders, including the League of California Cities and members of PG&E's Sustainability Advisory Council will play an advisory role with the program.
 
Strategies and solutions resulting from the grants will be made publicly available to help all communities, and encourage local and regional partnerships.
 
“Climate change is having extreme effects on our planet, and the state of California is facing increasing weather-related risks, including more frequent and more intense wildfires. I applaud PG&E for partnering with vulnerable communities on this science-based climate change resilience initiative. This new grant program will help Californians prepare for a future with more wildfires and other impacts from a changing climate,” said Dr. Jonathan Foley, Executive Director of the California Academy of Sciences and member of PG&E’s Sustainability Advisory Council.
 
“We’re delighted to see PG&E taking this leadership role in helping protect California’s communities from wildfire.  As we work to ensure a safe, sustainable environment for our firefighters, their families, and our communities, it is essential to gain a better understanding of how to reduce the risks climate change and wildfires pose to lives and property,” said Lou Paulson, President, California Professional Firefighters.
 
“Extreme weather and climate change are threatening the safety of communities across central and northern California. With wildfire and other risks increasing to historic levels, we must generate innovative, collaborative solutions to succeed. We applaud PG&E for offering a program that focuses on these risks and encourages the collaboration needed to keep our communities safe now and in the years to come,” said Tom Trott, general manager of Twain Harte Community Services District.
 
Grant Criteria and Eligibility
Grant proposals will be assessed according to the following criteria:
 

• Partnerships: the extent to which the proposal reflects a collaborative effort among multiple organizations
• Replicability: the extent to which the proposal identifies how others can learn from and adopt the resulting strategies and solutions
• Assistance to disadvantaged communities: the extent to which the proposal addresses the identified needs of disadvantaged communities
• Measurable impact: the extent to which the proposal includes practical, measurable and innovative ways to address community needs and climate risks

 
To be eligible, applicants must be a governmental organization, educational institution or 501(c)3 nonprofit organization. All applicants must include a local government within PG&E's service area as a partner.
Learn more about the grants and how to apply at pge.com/resiliencegrants.
 
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Grant Program timeline
The grant application process and project timeline is as follows:

• Request for Proposals opens: March 1, 2017
• Final applications due: May 12, 2017
• Awards announced: Summer 2017
• Grant awardee Final Report: August 2018

IN JUST A few short weeks, Californians have been reminded that drought has an evil twin: flooding.

Droughts in the Golden State often end with floods, as seems to be happening this winter. But the state’s political and economic fortunes always seem to swing between the two, leaving precious little opportunity to explore the terrain where they intersect.

One place that happens is on floodplains. When rivers swell, floodplains absorb the excess flow, protecting cities built along rivers, recharging groundwater and providing vital aquatic habitat – all at the same time. When drought swings back, we can pump out the groundwater to serve farms and neighborhoods.

There are precious few floodplains left in California. Development long ago eliminated all but about 5 percent of the state’s original floodplain wetlands, aided by levee building that forced rivers into narrow channels between fragile levees.

Now a new effort is building to reunite rivers with their floodplains, a movement that could take the sting out of both drought and flooding.

“We’re kind of reimagining the management of groundwater and surface water,” said Graham Fogg, a professor of hydrogeology at University of California, Davis. “The more we look at it, the more optimistic we are that there are ways to do this differently and better.”

A major step in the transition is anticipated later this year, when state officials are expected to approve a new Central Valley Flood Protection Plan. The plan is expected to include a new “conservation strategy” intended to encourage flood safety agencies to incorporate habitat and water supply components in their levee projects.
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What this means, in practice, is floodplain restoration. One way of doing that is to expand narrow river channels by moving levees farther apart. These so-called “setback levees” increase holding capacity for floodwaters between levees, and they also create new riparian habitat.

Continue to read in full HERE. 

The National Fish and Wildlife Foundation’s (“NFWF”) Sacramento District California In-Lieu Fee Program (“ILF Program”) was established in October 2014 and approved by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (“USACE”), the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the National Marine Fisheries Service, the California State Water Resources Control Board, the Central Valley Regional Water Quality Control Board, and the Lahontan Regional Water Quality Control Board (each an “Agency” and collectively the “Agencies”) in accordance with the 2008 Compensatory Mitigation for Losses of Aquatic Resources Final Rule (33 CFR Parts 325 and 332; and 40 CFR Part 230) (the “2008 Rule”).
The ILF Program offers permittees an in-lieu fee option to satisfy their compensatory mitigation obligations as determined by any of the Agencies, as applicable, for impacts to aquatic resources authorized under the Clean Water Act, the Rivers and Harbors Act, the Endangered Species Act, the Porter-Cologne Water Quality Control Act, and other applicable laws, in the “Program Area,” which covers the geographic area under the jurisdiction of the Sacramento District of the USACE within California. For reference, the overall Program Area is subdivided under the ILF Program into discrete geographies comprising 17 “Aquatic Resource Service Areas” and 12 “Vernal Pool Service Areas.” The ILF Program offers two types of Credits: 1) Vernal Pool Credits for authorized impacts to vernal pool wetlands; and 2) Aquatic Resource Credits for authorized impacts to wetlands (excluding vernal pools), other Waters of the United States, Waters of the State, and certain species.
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As a result of sales of Aquatic Resource Credits and Vernal Pool Credits to date, NFWF has accumulated certain funds that may be made available to fund projects that establish, enhance, restore, or, in certain circumstances, preserve wetland resources in an applicable Service Area (“ILF Projects”). NFWF is issuing this Request for Proposals (RFP) in order to solicit proposals for the implementation of eligible ILF Projects to be funded through the ILF Program.

Pre-Proposal due date: March 17, 2017
Full Proposal due date: April 21, 2017

More information and the application can be found HERE.